Chapter Summaries

Oreki and Sakayanagi anticipated that Tsukishiro would use the new OAA system and an incoming cross-grade exam to target Ayanokouji, so Sakayanagi gave Oreki access to the first-years' files. Tsukishiro equipped the White Room Chief with student records, but the Chief refused to follow his plan and insisted on challenging Ayanokouji on his own terms.

• Oreki, President Sakayanagi, and Little Sakayanagi discussed how Tsukishiro could alter the OAA data and use his authority to target Ayanokouji with a joint first- and second-year expulsion exam.
• Oreki suspected that the new first-years included White Room Students and examined their school files after Sakayanagi offered him access to them.
• Tsukishiro obtained the second-years' files for the White Room Students, reasoning that the Chief would need help to oppose Ayanokouji.
• Tsukishiro judged that the Chief's education was less advanced than Ayanokouji's and believed the Chief would likely lose.
• The White Room Chief rejected Tsukishiro's plan to help expel Ayanokouji and said he would challenge Ayanokouji in his own way and in the areas where Ayanokouji excelled.

Tsukishiro sent the rebellious fifth-generation White Room Chief to challenge Ayanokouji, expecting him to cause trouble and take the blame if the mission failed. At the Student Council, Oreki and Sakayanagi examined the freshmen’s records for suspected White Room Students and concluded that the files might have been arranged to mislead them.

• The White Room Chief left Tsukishiro, determined to surpass Ayanokouji, while Tsukishiro accepted that the chief might cause trouble and serve as a scapegoat.
• Oreki used his Student Council President authority to review the freshmen’s files, and Sakayanagi helped compare them with OAA data.
• Oreki and Sakayanagi identified Nanase, Amasawa, Yagami, Utsunomiya, Tsubaki, and Housen as suspicious candidates, while Oreki recognized Amasawa from his quest information.
• Sakayanagi said the freshmen’s files looked genuine but might have been prepared by Tsukishiro, and she suspected Nanase could be bait.
• Oreki and Sakayanagi reserved judgment about Tsubaki, noting that her lack of emotion resembled Ayanokouji’s.

Oreki considered how the White Room student might target Kushida and realized that anyone who approached her could be a suspect, with Yagami standing out because of his shared middle school and harmless profile. Kushida asked Oreki for protection from Ichika Amasawa, but he only startled her by calling her cute.

• Oreki said Ryuuen and the others would investigate the first-years’ backgrounds under the pretext of preventing them from exploiting the new students.
• Three days later, Oreki heard second-years and Sudou mock the first-years for spending their Private Points on overpriced items.
• Kushida approached Oreki and admitted she was worried that Ichika Amasawa might expose her dark past, asking for help if she faced danger.
• Oreki reasoned that the White Room student might approach Kushida to get close to Ayanokouji, and he identified Yagami as the leading suspect because he had attended Kushida and Horikita’s middle school.
• Oreki called Kushida cute, and she rejected the idea that he was treating her as a substitute for Sakayanagi or Horikita.

Oreki used Tsukishiro’s influence over exam questions to preserve the first-years’ Deserted Island and VIP Exams. He then learned that his monthly million-Point support had stopped, while Sakayanagi refused to spend five million Points to identify his former Sugar Senior.

• Oreki contacted Tsukishiro and secured the first-years’ Deserted Island and VIP Exams.
• Oreki noticed that his Sugar Senior had not sent her usual monthly million Points.
• Sakayanagi offered to identify the sender for five million Points, but Oreki said he would accept the end of their relationship.
• Oreki asked Sakayanagi to investigate the sender herself, but she refused to spend her Points on it.
• Teacher Majima entered the classroom as the students awaited the announcement of the month’s special exam.

Teacher Mashima announced that the first-years and second-years would take a Cross-Grade Joint Exam, supported by the new OAA student database. Principal Tsukishiro learned that Oreki had exposed Takuya Yagami’s identity, leaving him to reconsider the exam and how to make Yagami’s failure seem believable.

• Teacher Mashima introduced the OAA app, which ranked first- and second-year students by academic ability, intelligence, athletic talent, and social contribution.
• Oreki deduced that the special exam would pair second-years with first-years, and Mashima confirmed it was called the Cross-Grade Joint Exam.
• Principal Tsukishiro defended his decision to impose joint exams, despite staff concerns that the change disrupted the first-years’ usual Behavioral Standards Exam.
• Tsukishiro read Oreki’s message naming Takuya Yagami and realized that Yagami’s identity had been exposed before he could confront Ayanokouji.
• Tsukishiro left the surveillance room and decided to make Yagami’s blame for the failed mission seem more convincing.

Chabashira explained the OAA ratings and announced a joint written exam pairing second-year students with first-years, where low-scoring pairs could face severe penalties. The class learned that students could use the first-years’ OAA profiles to choose partners, leaving them to consider how to avoid expulsion.

• Chabashira showed the class their OAA ratings, including Kōenji’s perfect A+ score and Ike’s low evaluation.
• Chabashira explained how the OAA categories were calculated and how students’ ratings would update monthly.
• Kushida asked about the joint exam, and Chabashira explained its written-test format, class rewards, and individual prizes.
• Chabashira announced that a pair scoring 500 points or lower would cause the second-year student to be expelled, alarming Class 2-D.
• Hirata asked how students could learn about potential first-year partners, and Chabashira said their OAA profiles included names, photos, and middle-school results.

Class 2-B learned that the joint exam offered unusually few class evaluation Points, while Ryuuen took charge of Class 2-C’s response to the first-year pairing requirement. He began reviewing student data in the OAA System, preparing to choose first-years he could use for the exam.

• Class 2-B students objected to the low Point rewards, and Ichinose explained that Student Council President Yanagi had decided them.
• Kanzaki accepted that Class 2-B had lost its chance to challenge Class A, while his classmates lamented that Ichinose was not president.
• Class 2-C students worried that first-year partners might slack off and hurt their scores.
• Ryuuen silenced Class 2-C and took over the explanation from Teacher Bando.
• Ryuuen confirmed that score manipulation could lead to expulsion and told the students to check their OAA data.
• Shiina opened Class 2-C’s student information on the electronic display at Ryuuen’s request.

Ryuuen’s class reviewed the OAA data and began investigating all the first-years to reduce the risk of failing the paired exam. Meanwhile, a fifth-generation White Room student judged the school’s lessons beneath him and wondered whether Kiyotaka Ayanokouji had been diminished by his time there.

• Ryuuen had students verify that their OAA academic evaluations matched their actual abilities.
• Shiina displayed the profiles of all 160 first-years while the class searched for useful information about them.
• Ryuuen warned Ishizaki that inaccurate OAA data could lead to expulsion and noted that Kazuomi Housen had an academic evaluation of B+.
• The first-years learned that their monthly Private Points would depend on special exams and took the upcoming test seriously.
• A fifth-generation White Room student considered the school a kindergarten and questioned whether Kiyotaka Ayanokouji had become inferior after spending a year there.

Oreki met with Kushida and Horikita to discuss the special exam, which threatened Class D because many students had weak academic records and score control was forbidden. Horikita asked how he thought she should handle the exam, while Oreki said his class had little incentive to get involved.

• Kushida told Oreki that Class D had asked Horikita and Hirata for help with the exam and offered him IOUs worth two million Points if he assisted.
• Oreki refused the offer, doubting Class D could repay the debt and noting that several of its students could still pass with suitable first-year partners.
• Horikita arrived and asked Oreki how she should take the exam, surprising Kushida because Horikita was Class D's representative.
• Oreki said his class would face no particular difficulty and had little reason to act because the individual and class rewards were small.

Oreki discussed the first-years’ demands for compensation and told Horikita that Class D should unite the second-years and establish a cooperative relationship with the freshmen. Ryuuen asked Oreki to help confront the first-years after school, while Kushida watched Horikita hold Oreki’s hand despite his relationship with Sakayanagi Arisu.

• Kushida reported that Hirata had begun recruiting first-years for Ayanokouji and had found three Class 1-D students with B- academic ratings.
• Kushida said the first-year boys demanded 500,000 points each to pair with second-years, and Horikita explained that the exam rules gave the freshmen leverage.
• Oreki received a message from Ryuuen, who wanted to put the freshmen in their place and asked Oreki to join him after school.
• Oreki told Horikita to take the exam normally but said he wanted Class D to have a single voice and the second-years to form a cooperative relationship with the first-years.
• Horikita recognized that Oreki wanted to squeeze points from the freshmen, while Kushida silently watched Horikita hold Oreki’s hand.

Oreki visited Horikita and discussed Ichinose’s exchange meeting for first- and second-year students. He proposed turning the gathering into a way to collect information on the first-years and sell it to the struggling lower classes.

• Kushida realized Horikita might not react angrily even if Kushida tried to make her jealous, leaving Kushida unsettled.
• Ichinose sent a message announcing an exchange meeting to help students prepare for the exam, while Kushida’s classmates asked her to find strong first-year partners.
• Horikita reasoned that Ichinose was sharing helpful advice with the first-years, unlike the previous second-years and third-years.
• Oreki told Horikita that the meeting should be held on a large scale to gather information about the first-years.
• Oreki suggested selling verified information to Classes 1-C and 1-D, whose students were most disadvantaged by the exam.

Houtarou Oreki explained how he planned to profit from the first-years’ VIP Exam without fully controlling them. As Kazuomi Housen and Tsubasa Nanase confronted Class D, Horikita Suzune approached them while they searched the classroom for Ayanokouji.

• Oreki told Horikita that he could use the first-years’ rivalry to earn fifty million points without making the school his enemy.
• Horikita realized Oreki had given her a large number of points, but he dismissed her suggestion that he was asking the freshmen for money because of her.
• Housen barged into Kanji Ike in the second-years’ corridor, then called for Horikita Suzune and Yosuke Hirata.
• Tsubasa Nanase introduced herself and Housen as Class 1-D students, while Horikita stood to meet them.
• Housen and Nanase scanned Class D and fixed their attention on Ayanokouji.

Housen confronted Ryuuen and attacked his followers, overpowering Ishizaki and Ibuki before turning on Kushida. Oreki intervened to protect Kushida, leaving Housen stopped and facing Oreki.

• Ryuuen arrived and traded insults with Housen, who challenged him and lunged at him.
• Housen threw Ishizaki to the floor and then grabbed Ibuki by the throat when she tried to fight him.
• Ryuuen attacked Housen, but Housen avoided his strikes and moved toward Kushida.
• Oreki stepped in front of Kushida and stopped Housen's hand, warning him about getting expelled and extorted.

Oreki rescued Ibuki and Kushida from Housen, then gathered the students at Keyaki Mall and assessed the first-years as potential targets for business. The group ran into Nagumo, who realized Oreki’s companions might have been considering squeezing him for Points.

• Horikita photographed Housen, and Oreki intervened to free Ibuki and protect Kushida.
• Oreki introduced himself to Housen and Nanase, redirected them toward Ryuuen, and judged that both first-years were more capable than their rough appearances suggested.
• Kushida offered Ibuki a handkerchief, but Ibuki declined while catching her breath.
• Oreki brought the group to a family restaurant at Keyaki Mall and considered how Nagumo’s new shops tied the third-years to him.
• Nagumo encountered Oreki’s group and suspected that Ryuuen and Housen had considered taking Points from him.

Nagumo watched Oreki bring the second-years and first-years together, while avoiding involvement in the school’s increasingly unusual exams. In a private room, Oreki and Ryuuen forced Housen to agree to follow the school’s rules and keep his hands off the girls around Oreki, then turned to discussing cooperation for the special exam.

• Nagumo waived the private-room fee for Oreki’s group but decided not to investigate or interfere in their plans.
• Oreki asked Housen why he thought he had been brought to the private room, then lifted him by the throat as Ryuuen had Ishizaki photograph him.
• Housen agreed to accept the school’s rules and not use violence against women or students around Oreki after Ryuuen explained that brute force alone would not get him far.
• Tsubasa Nanase apologized for Housen and revealed that she knew the second-years’ names, prompting Ryuuen to suspect she had researched them.
• Housen said he had united Class D, promised not to attack anyone around Oreki or use violence against students, and identified cooperation with Class 1-D as the reason for the meeting.

Housen used Class 1-D’s top students as leverage to extort the second-years during the Pairing Exam negotiations, but Oreki warned him that his violence had already cost his class a huge number of Points. The groups reached a temporary deal, and Housen left planning to profit by selling information to the other first-year classes.

• Housen threatened that Class 1-D’s top students could refuse to pair up, forcing the second-years to risk random pairings and expulsion.
• Oreki warned Housen that the Student Council had evidence of his violence and that the school would deduct Points from him and Class 1-D.
• Oreki explained that the second-years had few Points to offer, while Horikita asked Class 1-D to cooperate so Class 2-D students could pass the exam.
• Housen accepted the arrangement despite calling it a losing deal, then said the first-years could exploit the next incoming class in turn.
• Housen told Nanase to handle Class 1-D’s academic survey and Pairing Exam, keep their Point losses secret, and help him sell information to Classes 1-A, 1-B, and 1-C.

Oreki arranged for Class 1-D to partner with Class 2-D for the cross-grade exam, while Kushida and Horikita discussed their roles and Oreki’s support. After dinner, they encountered Hirata and Ayanokouji with a first-year partner, Takuya Yagami, who recognized Kushida as a senpai from their middle school.

• Housen and Nanase left after Housen agreed to partner Class 1-D with Class 2-D for the exam, while Ryuuen and his classmates departed soon after.
• Kushida told Horikita that Class 1-D could partner with them, and Horikita said Oreki had given her points and was now short on money.
• Oreki, Horikita, and Kushida finished dinner at Nagumo’s restaurant and ran into Hirata and Ayanokouji with Takuya Yagami from Class 1-B.
• Yagami approached Kushida, introduced himself as her former middle-school junior, and greeted her with excitement.

Oreki concluded that Takuya Yagami had falsely claimed to know Kushida, while Principal Tsukishiro reflected on Yagami’s failed role and met with Kazuomi Housen. Housen demanded the full 20-million-point reward for expelling Ayanokouji and revealed that he had already devised a plan.

• Takuya Yagami approached Kushida and asked her to partner with him, but she declined because her class had already teamed up with Class 1-D.
• Oreki suspected Yagami was a White Room Student, and Kushida said she had never met him and had only pretended to be his junior.
• Principal Tsukishiro considered how he had helped Yagami and offered first-years a 20-million-point reward to expel Ayanokouji, though he had no intention of paying it.
• Kazuomi Housen met Tsukishiro and demanded the entire reward for himself.
• Housen complained that the school had left the first-years with no money and said he had a plan to expel Ayanokouji.

Oreki discussed the special exam and his plan to use Housen to break the deadlock, then spent time with Sakayanagi and considered how to address her heart condition. Horikita and Kushida each received messages from Oreki, leaving Kushida to cancel her shopping plans with Meiyu Wang.

• Tsukishiro asked whether Housen would threaten Ayanokouji's life, and Housen promised not to hurt him or anyone else because he had promised Oreki-senpai.
• Oreki visited Sakayanagi Arisu, comforted her as she worried about facing surgery, and resolved to find another way to help her after his Restoration ability failed.
• Oreki told Sakayanagi that Tsukishiro's special exam aimed to expel Ayanokouji and that he had found someone who could identify Ayanokouji's first-year partner.
• Horikita studied the textbook Oreki had prepared for her, then received his message telling her to go to bed early.
• Kushida arranged to shop with Meiyu Wang, but after Oreki messaged her to keep the next evening free, she canceled their plans.

Oreki waited for Kushida after she messaged that Teacher Ogura had kept her after class, then encountered a first-year student at the bulletin board. When she asked to add him as a friend, he refused because he had a girlfriend.

• Kushida messaged Oreki that Teacher Ogura had kept her after class, so he waited before heading to their meeting at the Shopping District.
• Oreki looked over the bulletin board and noted the class evaluation scores and the Student Council's workload.
• A purple-haired first-year student approached Oreki and praised Class 2-A's high evaluation score.
• The first-year asked Oreki to add her as a friend, and he refused, pointing out that his girlfriend was on the bulletin board.